Nitric acid is corrosive, and can irritate the eyes, nose, throat, and skin. It also can cause severe burns.

Fox 59 in Indianapolis reported that firefighters said a spill happened while transferring the nitric acid, which then caused the explosion.

Earlier this week, just a trace of nitric acid in a barrel being used by the Oklahoma City Police Department caused smoke that sent one officer to the hospital for shortness of breath, KOCO reported. The barrel had been donated to the police department, and officers were unaware it contained a small amount of nitric acid when they used it for storage for confiscated equipment.